Charly Bleaking

Tell us why you became a teacher

I come from a family who believes in and supports academic endeavors, and I always knew that I wanted to go to College. My mother was the Vice Principal of my elementary school; so, growing up the school classrooms and hallways were my safe space. Then, when it came time to choose my major, I chose elementary education - this quickly changed to Chemistry. However, after eight years in the industry my heart was unfulfilled. This is when I applied to teach at the local High School.

Tell us about your most memorable teaching experience

One of my most unforgettable memories from teaching Chemistry happened early on. I was working through a problem on the board and I forgot what the next step was! One of my top students smiled at me and helped me complete the problem out loud, step by step. This may seem like a small moment, but the class was engaged, and I was able to demonstrate that it's ok to not have all of the answers. In fact, you should never expect to have all the answers. We can work through difficult things together!

What would you do with the $25,000?

If I were so fortunate to win this award, I would use the money to take my Women in STEM club on a field trip to the UNCW Center for Marine Biology. Then, I would love to buy lab equipment for my school. We are a STEM school; however, our laboratory equipment is extraordinarily outdated. We would love to purchase spectroscopy instruments, micro pipettes, and potentially a polymerase chain reaction (PCR). I already have labs prepared for my biotechnology class; I just need the equipment.